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Should QCARC continue giving VE Exams before club meetings in even months?
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Two high altitude balloons with APRS telemetry reporting transmitters passed just west of DuBois on September 13. These balloons were reporting altitudes of just over 45,000′ and temperatures around 12 degrees F. I happened to capture a screen shot one of the balloons as it was posted online, via the WA3UFN-1, APRS I-Gate.
Area amateurs recently had an opportunity to actually test preparedness at the Baker Trail Ultra-Marathon where amateurs provided communications along a 50 mile trail where cellular communication was mostly unavailable. This was the real deal in testing the functionality of equipment and abilities of the operators to set up effective station to provide needed communications from areas that were really out in the sticks. Setting up in the driveway is easy, it is pretty much a known quantity with few if any surprises that will need to be contended with. When amateurs are out in real conditions all bets are off that it will be easy, there are typically issues that will have to be addressed that are difficult to anticipate and simulate in the driveway.
This year we were a few stations short, even though the event was promoted soon enough to plan to help and learn. The learning process does not stop once a person obtains a call sign, it actually ramps up. With the license folks can actually press the microphone button and learn to communicate. That learning can also be obtained by participating in contest which are to some folks find scary and something they shy away from. Contests also provide a great environment for on the air training due to the variety of signal strengths you encounter and sometimes the varying accents from across the country as well as around the world. The bottom line is that practice makes perfect, in most activities, in our lives. Actually you can believe that practice makes perfect in our hobbly. Think about practicing at an event or a contest so when the real deal occurs you will more likely be prepared.
This important piece of legislation that may very well have an effect on more amateur radio operators than what you may first expect, has moved into the Senate. The legislation has a history of bi-partisan support but we still need to keep aware of what is occurring with the bill as well as contact our representatives and encourage their support by clicking on the link directly below. https://arrl.rallycongress.net/ctas/urge-us-senate-to-support-amateur-radio-parity-act
For the latest information on this legislation and information on the best way to request your representative’s support, check out http://www.arrl.org/amateur-radio-parity-act Sometimes things do not all ways as they appear. SkyWarn training may conjure up ideas of intense detailed training for the likes of those who are meteorologists. No so! This training is for the everyday person on the street, so to say. The training gives the everyday person the background to recognize and report on severe weather issues that may impact themselves, families, friends and neighbors. Since severe weather is one of those events that can happen to everyone, not just someone else, getting the training to help prevent injuries and maybe even damages can be an asset. Whether you are part of an organized group that participates in SkyWarn or an individual who would rather do it on their own, you need the training to pass along the appropriate information to the Weather Service Forecast Offices, or to be able to protect yourself. The training that is made available is not something intuitive that we are born with.
Register by sending an email advising that you want to attend the SkyWarn training to the Clearfield County Assistant EMA Director at: “smignot at clearfield911 dot com” The training is scheduled for July 19, 2017 at 6:30 PM at the Clearfield County 911 Center at 911 Leonard Street just east of Clearfield off Rte. 322. Talk-in on the 147.315 repeater.
The SkyWarn presentation has been rescheduled for July 19, 2017. This training is open to amateur radio operators as well as the general public. See the following information from Peter Jung, Warning Coordination Meteorologist, State College : 1 – SkyWarn Training: July 19th at 6:30 pm. Registration in this method is important so that we can get an accurate count of who will attend, and a way to directly reach out via email should we need to do a last minute cancellation or change. GENERAL REMINDERS FOR SKYWARN CLASSES
Since the National Weather Service outline for Severe Weather Week encompasses the weather that we encounter in our area, it might just be a great idea to The topics covered each day will be: Monday – Tornadoes, Tuesday – Severe Thunderstorms, Wednesday – Flash Flooding, Friday – SkyWarn™ Spotters. You can click on the weekdays a few lines below the icons.
The National Weather Service Flood Safety Awareness Week Begins March 27. Considering we experience flooding in our area rather often, it is likely worth your time to check out the National Weather Service flood safety week web page at http://www.weather.gov/ctp/floodSafetyWeek The week starts out with information on the continuing effort to modernize the hydrologic information that enables the general public to be aware of water levels in bodies of water in their areas. An interactive, real time hydrologic map of PA. Toward the bottom of Monday’s page are a couple downloads in .pdf format that may be of interest. One of my favorite topics is the “Turn Around Don’t Drown” information that is available, that EVERYONE should follow. If people do not follow the simple phrase they are risking not only their own life and those who may be in the vehicle with them but also the lives of the rescue responders. The “Turn Around Don’t Drown” campaign is highlighted Tuesday. The balance of the week includes; the causes and severity of floods, flood insurance and flood safety. Please take some time to refresh yourself of flooding issues and the safety points that everyone should be aware of.
This question often occurs with newly licensed radio amateurs, and may occur from time to time with those who have been licensed for a few years. One of your first avenues to find out an answer to a question may be your local amateur radio club. Often times there are members of the local club who can give an authoritative answer to your questions as well as direct you to periodicals whether a print version or online to qualify what they tell you and provide even more information. Of course, if you want, you can just jump online and find out some information to your questions but remember you may still need some clarification to the answers you find and again that is where the knowledge of long time radio amateurs can help clear up your new questions.
You may have noticed that I tend to stress that you should talk to someone who is knowledgeable. Too often folks tend to have their personal perspectives color answers on given issues which may still be 100% accurate but since you are asking you likely will have a bit of a problem weeding out the biased answers, wrong answers and technically correct answers. The person you are getting your information from sometimes will say that a certain answer is their personal feelings toward a topic and then further inform you of where their perspective is coming from. Consider that the perspective may come from a personal experience, sometimes with very interesting and informative explanations! This is only a couple ideas of what to do as a newly licensed amateur radio operator. The hobby is very diverse in what you can get involved in. For starters please give the podcast a try, it may surprise you it what is available to learn from it. Along with the podcast remember there is likely an amateur radio club reasonably close to you where you can find answers to your questions as well as meet others who are in the same hobby.
Hi folks, by clicking on the Club logo below, you will find the current net format to be used for the VHF and UHF nets. This format was first used for the February 19, 2017 VHF and UHF nets and is available for download so that anyone can run the net. Running the net may not flow easily if it is your first time but after a couple times, running the net will likely be second nature. Thank You and Good Luck. Click the “NET FORMAT“ icon to download the file. Corrected version: 3/26/2017
As we’ve seen this winter, the weather can change rather quickly. Especially when traveling, we need to be prepared for those extremes during our winter travels. One of the biggest issues this winter has been the occurrence of white-outs. Often times these winter squalls materialized so fast there is no time to react and the ensuing results can be catastrophic, as we have seen in our locale. Preparing for winter travel includes both the folks in the vehicle as well as the vehicle. Click on the Getting Traction graphic for more information about preparing yourself and your vehicle for travel during the winter. You can never be too safe!
Many amateur radio operators have equipment operating on 12 VDC power supplies. There are times that the equipment needs to quickly switch to a 12 volt battery back-up. There is a very easy way to accomplish this without any intervention needed to switch back and forth from the AC operated power supply and the battery back-up as needed. I’ve found that the PWRgate meets the need to control a supply of 12 volt power to equipment when the AC power supply fails. The latest model of the PWRgate has three output connections for the equipment that you may need to power, up to 25 amps. There is a connection for your back-up battery to charge your battery and power your equipment when the AC power supply loses its 120 VAC supply, as well as the input from an AC powered 12 VDC supply. I can say from experience, I have one in use, this unit works as advertised. It is great to maintain 12 VDC to equipment that may otherwise lock up if the power is removed then reapplied when an orderly shutdown/restart should be done. The PWRgate is offered by an amateur radio operator, who provides fast shipping and super service if an issue may arise. You can visit the web site http://ki0bk.no-ip.com/~pwrgate/LLPG/Site/Welcome.html for more information on the PWRgate and other devices that are available.
During this week, to be prepared, you should: > Understand actions you can take to be prepared for emergency  Build a kit. Include enough food, water and medical supplies for your needs in your emergency kit to last for at least 72 hours. Ready.gov/myplan. Brought to you by the Ad Council and Ready. Information and graphics provided by FEMA
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